The Mailbox (film)
| The Mailbox | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | David K. Jacobs |
| Screenplay by | David K. Jacobs |
| Story by | Florence Doyle Putt |
| Produced by | David K. Jacobs |
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Reed Smoot |
| Edited by | James W. Dearden |
| Music by | Merrill Jenson |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |
Release date |
|
Running time | 24 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Mailbox is a 1977 American 24-minute short film produced by BYU Motion Picture Studios. The film is available through the Brigham Young University Office of Creative Works on a compilation DVD with other LDS films.[1][2][3][4][5]
Plot
Lethe, an grandmother, goes to the mailbox every day as she hopes her children have sent her a letter. She asks her children to write instead of having short phone calls, but they never send any. One of Lethe's daughters finally sends he a letter, but only to tell her they are putting her in a retirement home. After Lethe gets her letter, she goes to open it but collapses. Before she dies she asks her neighbor to tell her children that she was so happy to finally get a letter. [6] [7]
Cast
- Lethe Tatge as Lethe Anderson
- Rachel Jacobs as Rachel Johnson
- Rebecca Glade as Sharon Johnson
- Alan Nash as Mike the Mailman
- Martha Henstrom as Myra (voice)
- Winkie Horman as Susan (voice)
Reception
Considered as among the best known films produced at BYU,[8] and "It is clear that the tragedy is not in the death, but in the emptiness of the mailbox."[9]
See also
References
- ^ "Midway Woman Stars In Film", Daily Herald (Utah), p. 24, 7 March 1977. Archive reprint from Newspapers.com
- ^ "'The Mailbox' Film Premiers Friday in Midway Town Hall", Daily Herald (Utah), p. 33, May 15, 1977. Archive reprint from Newspapers.com
- ^ "The Mormon Media Image" (PDF), Sunstone, 3 (1): 25, November–December 1977
- ^ Hall, Airen (October 2012), "Melodrama on a Mission: Latter-Day Saint Film and the Melodramatic Mode", Journal of Religion and Film, 16 (2): 13–15
- ^ Brigham Young University Studies, Volume 46. Brigham Young University. 2007. p. 101.
- ^ Jones, Jared (2019-03-15). "Latter-day Saint Video Vault: 'The Mailbox' Guilts Us into Calling Our Parents". This Week in Mormons. Retrieved 2025-08-11.
- ^ Hall, Airen (October 2012). "Melodrama on a Mission: Latter-Day Saint Film and the Melodramatic Mode". Journal of Religion and Film. 16 (2): 13–16 – via Digital Commons.
- ^ Hunter, James Michael (2012). Mormons and Popular Culture: The Global Influence of an American Phenomenon, Volume 1. ABC-CLIO. p. 26. ISBN 978-0313391675. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
- ^ Consortium of University Film Centers, R.R. Bowker Company (1986). Educational film/video locator of the Consortium of University Film Centers and R.R. Bowker, Volume 2. R.R. Bowker. p. 1920. ISBN 0835221814. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
External links
- The Mailbox at IMDb
- "The Mailbox". Mormon Literature & Creative Arts Database.
- The Mailbox at LDSFilm.com
- The Mailbox on YouTube